Friday, December 18, 2009

DC Preview Review for February Part 3 of 3

NIGHT OWLS VOL.1 TPWritten by , Peter TimonyArt and cover by Bobby TimonyAdvance-solicited • On sale March 24 • 192 pg FC, 8.375" x 6", $14.99 USIn 1920s New York City, Professor Ernest Baxter, an expert in all things arcane; Mindy Markus, a scrappy flapper; and Roscoe, a gargoyle from the Bronx, are The Night Owls. Together they solve crimes no one else can, specializing in the supernatural, in this first volume collecting the short stories that make up their webcomic adventures.

Jim: Webcomics rule. I think almost every publishing company (save Marvel) has published a webcomic collection.Lee: And, Zuda has done some very, very good ones. This is very good stuff. Gwen: Ooo. This looks pretty neat! I'm glad webcomics are getting more recognition as of late.

ABSOLUTE PLANETARY BOOK TWO HCWritten by Warren EllisArt and cover by John CassadayAdvance-solicited • On sale July 7 • 384 pg, FC, $75 USSnow, Jakita and the Drummer take on their nemeses the Four...then death itself! PLANETARY reaches its conclusion as the field team made a mad decision regarding an old friend. The Absolute Edition Book Two collects issues #13-27 of the stunning series.

Jim: It is the first citing of the Holy Grail. A buddy of mine claims this is the best comic series ever. It is in the top ten for sure and nice to see Vol 2 solicited even if it is for July 2010.Lee: I’ll be getting the smaller hc version of this but I think I’m just glad the series is over. Maybe now, Ellis can work on Desolation Jones!Gwen: Ah Planetary... took so long to come out. Really awesome and worth the wait though. Luckily I just read them in trade :)

AREA 10 HCWritten by Christos N. GageArt by Chris SamneeCover by Lee BermejoAdvance-solicited • On sale April 7 • 184 pg, B&W, 5.5” x 8”, $19.99 US • MATURE READERS“An exquisitely creepy crime story loaded with twists. Gage and Samnee make one hell of a team. Thanks to them I’ll forever be uncomfortable around power drills.” – Jason Aaron (SCALPED)“A moody, compelling thriller superbly told. AREA 10 is a breakneck ride. Time after time, I thought I had it figured out, then got thrown at the next bend of the road.” – Mike Carey (THE UNWRITTEN)In New York City, a killer known as “Henry The Eighth” leaves a trail of decapitated corpses — keeping the severed heads to use for unknown purposes. NYPD Detective Adam Kamen leads the investigation, until a seemingly unrelated freak incident leaves him with a brain injury in the section known as “Brodmann Area 10.” When he recovers, Adam’s perceptions of time are altered. He becomes slowly convinced that his bizarre condition could be tied directly to the “Henry” case — and that the key may lie in the ancient, mystical practice of trepanation.

Jim: I like both the writer and the artist so I was almost committed before the premise. The premise sounded cool enough and it is only $20. I say only $20 because the page count is 184 which is a decent bang for the buck and $20 for a small hardcover seems reasonable.Lee: So far, these little crime hardcovers have been very hit-miss. Budget’s being what they are, I’m waiting for a review first.Gwen: This looks intriguing. I agree with Jim about the creator team - it pretty much sells the book just knowing who the team is.

MYSTERIUS THE UNFATHOMABLE TPWritten by Jeff ParkerArt and cover by Tom FowlerAdvance-solicited On sale March 17 144 pg, FC, $17.99 USExplore the unimaginable world of magic and adventure with an eccentric magician known as Mysterius the Great in this paperback collecting the acclaimed 6-issue miniseries. When a young reporter named Ella becomes Mysterius’ new assistant, their cases drag them into a world of magic, as well as a pocket dimension... and beyond.

Lee: Jim read the first issue and didn’t like it. I read the first issue and loved it. I’m getting the trade so I can read the whole story. The question for Jim, now that you love Parker’s work on Hulk and Agents of A-, are you willing to give this another try?????Jim: Nope. I like Jeff Parker, but I have never liked everything any writer has done.Gwen: I can't say I'm interested in this.

Lee: After reading the first volume, I almost felt dirty because this was such an honest depiction of war in Africa. This is one of the best, if not the best, war comic on the stands these days. Honest, real, and incredibly brutal, it’s a fantastic read but not for the squemish.Jim:I read the first arc and that was enough for me. It felt like a very real picture of what is going on in Africa, but I was not compelled enough to come back for more.Gwen: I don't really like the war comic genre. At all.

BATMAN REBORN SERIES 1 ACTION FIGURESIn one of the most exciting, ongoing comics events in recent years, a cast of familiar characters assumes the mantle of the bat. And out of the events of BATMAN REBORN, a new generation of heroes rise!Now don’t miss out on the action figures based on this award-winning, best-selling series, which includes both Azrael and Batgirl in their new costumes.Includes:Batman: Jason Todd 6.65” hBatman: Two-Face 6.7” hAzrael 6.75” hBatgirl 5.75” h4-color clamshell packaging.Advance-solicited; on sale July 14, 2010 * Action Figures *

Jim: These should have been coming out with the Batman Battle for the Cowl series as the Jason Todd costume is already a thing of the past, the Batman Two Face was a hallucination by Dick Grayson, Batgirl was not even in the series and Azrael no one cares about. DC has gotten it right with Blackest Night and is releasing the action figures as the series is still ongoing.Lee: Wheee more action figures I don’t care about. I’ve noticed that the local store has as many action figures on the wall as back issues in the bin. I wonder what that says about our hobby?Gwen: What was the latest action count at your office Jim? 80? Jim: More - closer to 100.

AME-COMI HEROINE SERIES: STEEL PVC FIGURE DESIGNED BY DUSTIN NGUYENSCULPTED BY JONATHAN MATTHEWSThere’s no messing with the newest heroine to join the AME-COMI series!Between her high-tech, armored costume and her trademark hammer that can replicate the powers of Superman, Natasha Jasmine Irons, daughter of the original Steel, means business!The limited-edition, non-articulated, approximately 8.25” high PVC statue comes with a base, is packaged in a 4-color window box with J-hook and is manufactured to order.AME-COMI HEROINE SERIES: SUPERGIRL (V.2) PVC FIGUREDESIGNED AND SCULPTED BY JONATHAN MATTHEWSKara Zor-El can’t resist smiling at herself when she finds this side-view mirror on the streets of Metropolis.Sure to be just as popular as the sold-out, original Ame-Comi version of Superman’s cousin, Supergirl (V.2) is a non-articulated PVC statue, standing approximately 8.75” tall, including a base and packaged in a 4-color window box with J-hook.Limited Edition. Manufactured to order.Advance-solicited; on sale July 21, 2010 * Statue * $60 US

Jim: Steel got a sex change operation and was vamped up to make the cut for this line. It just cracks me up.Lee: Yeah, yeah Steel's fun and all but Supergirl is where it’s at. Super short skirt, a wink and a nod and… OMG! Is that a video camera in her hand!!!! Yeah baby, nothing screams love like home movies!!!!Jim: I think I feel bad because Supergirl recently came out and said she had sleep with Tiger Woods also.Gwen: Tiger Wood's wife can probably take Supergirl.

Heroes of the DC Universe: BIZARRO BUSTDESIGNED BY GARY FRANKSCULPTED BY JEAN ST. JEANSuperman’s “imperfect duplicate” is the latest villain to infiltrate the HEROES OF THE DC UNIVERSE bust line!Designed by New York Times best-selling artist Gary Frank, this bust features Kent Clark wearing his trademark “Bizarro #1” medallion while posed atop a base of his cube-shaped home planet, Htrae. The bust is hand-painted, cold-cast in porcelain, measures approximately 6” high x 5” wide x 3” deep and is packaged in a 4-color box.Limited Edition. Manufactured to order.Advance-solicited; on sale July 7, 2010 * Bust * $70 US

Jim: To be done correctly shouldn’t this be his ass sticking up from the base? He is opposite man after all. Me am no understand.Lee: And this comment makes up for my stupid comment about Ame-Comi statues. We’re even.Gwen: Who buys all of these figures? I can see having a handful of cool ones, but seriously? Bizzaro? Not for $70.

Jim: Two major hard covers were solicited this month, with one coming out in May and one in July, I want them NOW!Lee: It’s not often that I add a bunch of books but Vertigo stepped it up this month so there’s a lot to look forward to.Gwen: Haha, and I wondered where I got my need for instant gratification....